The Bad Seed Activities and Comprehension Questions

The Bad Seed Activities and Comprehension Questions

The Bad Seed by Jory John promotes a growth mindset. Read on to find The Bad Seed activities and comprehension questions to promote the importance of self-reflection and having a positive attitude towards yourself.

The Bad Seed Activities and Comprehension Questions

The Bad Seed by Jory John, a sunflower seed, acts badly because others think it is bad, but realises it is never too late to change its behaviour even if others still judge it. Its theme includes people who can positively change their behaviour even if others still judge them for their previous behaviour.

The Bad Seed by Jory John also gives you the opportunity to teach:

Scroll down for The Bad Seed activities, discussion questions and videos.

The Bad Seed Summary

An angry-looking sunflower seed tells the reader, “I’m a bad seed. A baaaaaaaaaaad seed.” Corn kernels, peanuts, pistachios and hazelnuts mumble negatively about the bad seed and attempt to keep their children away from it.

The Bad Seed overhears their negative comments and sees them keeping their distance. It explains its reputation. “I never put things back where they belong… I tell long jokes with no punch lines… I lie about pointless stuff,” and “I finish everybody’s sentences.” It becomes clear a traumatic experience of nearly being eaten as an infant meant The Bad Seed had “become a different seed entirely.”

The seed starts to reflect on its behaviour and makes a choice to not be bad anymore. As the seed’s self-esteem grows and its behaviour improves, the other seeds begin to see it in a new light.

The Bad Seed by Pete Oswald
Illustrator: John Jory
Publisher: HarperCollins (2017)
ISBN: 9780062467768

Take a look inside

John Jory Official Website

Book Series

The Bad Seed, The Good Egg, The Cool Bean, The Couch Potato, The Smart Cookie

Related Books

The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein
A Bad Case of the Stripes by David Shannon
The Recess Queen by Alexis O'Neill
The Dot by Peter H. Reynolds
The Bad Mood and the Stick by Lemony Snicket
The Lion Inside by Rachel Bright

The Bad Seed Activities & Resources

I have created literacy graphic organizers for The Bad Seed. You can find them at my Teachers Pay Teachers store. There are many activities for each literacy area to differentiate depending on your student’s ability/age. They include activities for:

*Click on these links to discover book recommendations on these topics.

The Bad Seed Activities & Links

FREE The Bad Seed Activities

Would you like free graphic organisers for The Bad Seed?

I have a freebie that is part of a larger resource so you can try it out before buying anything!

Fill in the form below to get access to the FREE pack. Click on the image to see the full pack on Teachers Pay Teachers.

The Bad Seed Read-Aloud Questions

Read aloud sessions are a wonderful way for children to understand the connection between written text and spoken language. You can model reading habits and strategies, reading fluency, tone and eye contact. You can also introduce different genres, authors and illustrators.

  • What do you think made the seed bad?
  • What were some of the bad things The Bad Seed did?
  • How do you think it felt to be called bad by the other seeds?
  • How do you feel about how the other seeds act towards the seed?
  • How do you think the seed felt during the incidents in its childhood?
  • What happened to The Bad Seed and his family?
  • Why do you think the seed decided to change?
  • What different emotions did the Seed experience throughout the story?
  • How did the seed’s behaviour affect others?
  • Why did the seed’s childhood affect its behaviour?

You can find a full set of discussion cards in The Bad Seed Literacy Bundle or as a separate pack.

The Bad Seed Book Videos

Books by Pete Oswald & John Jory

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The Bad Seed Activities and Comprehension Questions

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